an Elementary Integration Specialist discussing teaching and technology, while pondering the great question of life, the universe, and everything.

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On January 28th, The Doctor (made famous from the television series Doctor Who) visited our classroom. He was on an urgent mission from the future to stop a catastrophe, namely the failure of every student on an upcoming Mathematics quiz. He arrived via the TARDIS just before Math class began and the classroom was abuzz.

The Doctor began by surveying the room and then introducing himself in his usual cryptic manner. The students were soon aware this was not an ordinary man. Within minutes he made them aware of the dire future that awaited them it he didn’t intervene. After promptly removing all the ‘textbooks’ from the students desk, exclaiming “These are a most boring way to learn” The Doctor quickly erected old fashioned blackboards along two walls of the classroom (black butcher paper).

The students were then divided into pairs (determined by a check for understanding the previous day). The Doctor then had the partner with the least skill work out several practice problems while his/her partner coached them through any difficulties. An hour flies by pretty quickly when The Doctor is around and soon Math was over. He promised to return after the quiz to view the results. Upon entering the TARDIS, he disappeared.

Making of The Doctor:

What follows is a bit of history on how I made The Doctor come to life.

I began with building the TARDIS. This was the most time consuming part of the project. I envisioned it as a door cover for our classroom closet. After doing much research (very thankful for Google ImageSearch) I settled on the design. Thankfully butcher paper comes in TARDIS blue!

With the TARDIS finalized I then began working on The Doctor’s costume. Thankfully the BBC has an amazingly helpful section titled: How To Dress Like The Tenth Doctor (actually they have sections for every Doctor 1– 11). I used the information from this site which includes: hair, suit, tie, jacket, boots, and props. I then visited my closet and the local Goodwill to finalize my look. The props needed were standard issue Doctor Who: psychic paper and a Sonic Screwdriver. I ordered the Tenth Doctor’s Sonic Screwdriver from Amazon, and created the psychic paper from household office supplies.

With all the props, costume, and door in place I was ready to give my students a lesson to remember, both in content and in delivery. They absolutely loved The Doctor’s visit. And more importantly, after another check for understanding, it was clear that where less than half of the students had learned the material the day before, fully 95% understood after The Doctor’s visit. I shared the success of this lesson with friends on Google Plus, Facebook, and Twitter and soon gained the attention of our local paper.

I’d like to thank Dave Burgess and his amazing book Teach Like a Pirate for inspiring me to hook my students in exciting and inventive ways! And now that my students have taken the dreaded quiz, it’s time for The Doctor to return and discuss the results…

Looking back over time it is easy to remember an easier more happy time. The economy was stable. War was not prevalent. Mothers stayed at home. Fathers worked nine to five. Children behaved in school and always tried their best. Well that is what history looks like when viewed through the gray tinted glasses of fifties television families.
Though these concepts seem antiquated, many of the assumptions made in everyday family lives are based on such stereotypical ideals of family life. As educators and future administrators we long for the parents to be involved, like they used to be in a bygone era. We wish that parents would call to say what a good job we are doing. We wish that parent teacher conferences would be pleasant all the time. Room parents arriving daily, asking to be kept busy with miscellaneous projects. The school longs for full bleachers at sporting events and full gymnasiums during christmas programs. Just like things were. The PTO night, with standing room only, every parent present and agreeable. Money rolling in from parents wanting to help out.
But as we look back in history, or pseudo history, did this level of involvement actually ever occur in the real world? Surly on some levels and in some locations it did. But I would argue, the problems we as educators and administrators are facing with lack of parent involvement and parent apathy, are the same problems facing schools fifty years ago. So let us take a snapshot of what involvement looks like in schools today.

Current Levels of Involvement in the 21st Century

Parental involvement in elementary school classrooms runs an enormous gamut. Yes there are schools in this nation that have mothers helping everyday. These schools have volunteers at school functions and bristling PTO meetings each month. These schools are also rare. Mostly confined to suburban upper middle class districts, if not privately funded schools. This is of course in itself a stereotype, but one that I have encountered.
At the other end of involvement by parents in the twenty-first century is the zero involvement school. In these schools there is no PTO. Teachers and administrators educate students for 180+ days and never once interact with parents. Phones are not answered. Mail is not replied to. Requests for conferences are denied. These schools function without the parents. That is not to say that these schools are not offering a good education (this issue will not be further addressed in this paper). These two extremes are both rare cases with regards to parent involvement in elementary education.
I propose that most schools in this nation fall between these extremes and can be defined as such:

Parents are willing to help out some.

Parents are generally too busy to devote direct time during the school day.

Parents have a limited income, so monetary donations are also limited.

Parents expect the schools to handle education, it is the teacher’s job.

Parents are judgmental with regards to all school to home communication.

Parents are less likely to commit to assisting but will help when asked.

Parent Teacher Organizations are not utilized and are looked at as a clique in the eyes of outsider parents.

Parents are willing to ride along on field trips but usually are not able to drive for a field trip.

Parents would agree that most communication between school and home is negative communication regarding the student.

I truly believe that parents want to be involved in their child’s education. I also believe it is wrong for schools to expect the unrealistic 1950’s ideal of parental involvement. I do however feel that each school should take a look at itself, and it’s involvement and set reasonable and attainable goals for increasing parent involvement. The clearest method for increasing involvement of parents is to establish a communication link with them.

Communication is Key Between Home and School

There are many ways that schools communicate with families. Phone calls. Email. Handouts. Letters. Notes. Automated systems. Parent portals. Face to face. Group meetings. Videos. We live in an age where communication and information is readily available in many forms. Thus as a school we must not only communicate with our parent patrons, we must communicate effectively with them.
A school must use K.N.O.W.L.E.D.G.E. when communicating with parents in order to build community, trust, and a relationship which will increase involvement in the school:

K Know a much as possible about the person you are communicating with. Ask other teachers or staff. Learn about their profession and skills. This will give you an advantage as well as avoid possibly embarrassing slip-ups.

N Never assume that your message was received correctly or with the proper intent. Always be as clear as possible with your reason for communicating.

O Overcome any personal communication problems you might have as an individual in order to communicate effectively. I personally hate making phone calls, but sometimes this is the best or only way to make contact.

W When is the best time to contact a parent? Always take into account the times of day that works best for the parent, unless the situation is an emergency. This part may seem difficult, but as a parent of small children and a busy schedule I have times when I simply can’t be reached.

L Let the content of the message drive the communication. Do not get too tied up in pleasantries and chit-chat. Make sure the content of the message is received effectively without a lot of distracting other information.

E Ears. Use them. Be a good listener when communicating. When receiving written communication be a thorough reader. Do not let a lack of careful listening negatively affect the content of what the parent is saying. Listen well.

D Determine the best communication method for each parent. Some parents prefer email. Others have not web access. Many prefer a direct phone call or face to face interaction. Whatever the preference cater to the individual. Always take into account the times of day that works best for the parent, unless the situation is an emergency.

G Genuine gratefulness. Make the parent feel that you are grateful for their support. Make this as genuine as possible. It is important that the parent leave the conversation feeling like they have not been wasting their time.

E Evaluate each communication experience and learn from it. Reflect on what was said on both parts and plan ahead for the next communication.

Through the implementation of my K.N.O.W.L.E.D.G.E. based communication strategies I believe that a school will increase the level of parental involvement.

How do Schools Motivate Parental Involvement?

That is the ultimate question. How do we motivate parents? Obviously their motivation must be intrinsic. Schools cannot pay parents to help, or reward their good behavior…or can we. I believe that parents simply want two things. Satisfaction and the best life experiences for their children. As a parent I am more than willing to help out with school. But I want to feel good about doing so. Positive communication between the parent and teacher can go along ways toward motivating said parent to help with school. It is often stated when dealing with students: say three positives for every negative comment. This holds true for dealing with anyone, including parents. Establishing a positive rapport with parents increases trust and provides a stable foundation for further communication building.
As a parent I am often requested to help during Sunday School at church. This help is ‘required’. The younger students are supposed to have parents with them at all times. As a teacher I can understand this. As a parent it can be difficult, especially when juggling more than one child. But all of the difficulties are usually forgotten when the Sunday School teacher thanks me for coming and helping. That is all it takes. Two simple words. Thank you. Appreciation is a powerful tool and a powerful motivator. If a parent feels the work they are doing is appreciated they will be more likely to help in the future. On the converse, when a parent is not shown appreciation, even one time, it often causes an irreparable rift between home life and school. The school is viewed as ungrateful. The school can apparently get along without help. We must not let this happen. We as educators and administrators must motivate our parents through positive contact and genuine appreciation for parent support.

Conclusion

Every parent wants the best for their child. Every parent is willing to help their child succeed in school. Every parent is willing to do something to help out. It is up to the school to seek out these parents. To actively pursue them. Make them feel welcome and trusted. Draw them into the conversation about school and success. Communicate effectively with them. And by all means show them appreciation. By establishing a constant stream of supportive communication, we can increase the level of parent involvement in our elementary schools. The parents want to help. Lets allow them to do so.

Since the beginning of civilization, human beings have felt the need to get each other in trouble. It seems to be the life-long ambition of some individuals to make others miserable in-order-to feel a little better about there own small lives. I am of course speaking of homosapien-tattalous (the tattletale). This species of human is unfortunately not rare and is commonly found on school play yards and in elementary school classrooms (though they are known to frequent lunchrooms, water-cooler areas, and the office mail room, among many other locals). Tattle tales are often easy to spot at long distance and should be avoided at all costs. The tattletale often lacks self esteem and rarely has close friends. Tattletales are parasitic creatures that feed by sucking the happiness from others (not unlike a dementor if you fancy Harry Potter). Alas, being a teacher I cannot avoid interacting with the larva tattletales. Thus as educators we must develop strategies to handle the creature without harming it. If you cause harm to a tattletale, it will of course tattle on you. Thus the conundrum.

Dealing with Homosapien-Tattalous

I have dealt with tattletales in my career in various ways. There is the tried and true: punish the tattler not the victim of the tattling. I have seen tattle journals for classrooms. I’ve heard of detention for tattling. And yet no matter the punishment, homosapien-tattalous will continue to evolve to survive. An interesting adaptation occurred in my classroom this year. Several weeks ago, one of my resident tattletales (of the classroom variety) raised his hand to ask a question. I, being an amazing teacher, arrived promptly at the student’s desk. The student, Arthur Dent, looked at the girl across from him and then at me before speaking, “Mr. B, can we pass notes in class?”

I answered, “Of course we can’t. We’ve established that rule since day one.”

The student smiled and looked sneeringly at the girl across from him. He continued to speak, “Oh I was just wondering cause Trillian here was passing a note to her friend. So I guess since you said we can’t do it, she should get in trouble.” I was of course livid! I explained to the creature that even though he was asking a question, it was still tattling and possibly worse than the regular version.

Over the next few days Arthur and Trillian presented me with several different questions, each of them beginning the same way. “Mr. B, are we allowed to…” And alas I lamented. I thought I had eradicated homosapien-tattalous from my classroom. I was wrong. I have underestimated the resilience of the species. But fear not. Wherever there is a tattletale sucking the happiness from others, a teacher will be there to tell them it is wrong. “Constant Vigilance!” (again if you fancy Harry Potter)

The Perfect Solution

Many years ago a teacher “sitting on her own in a small café in Rickmansworth suddenly realized what it was that had been going wrong all this time, and she finally knew how the world could be made a good and happy place.” A world free of tattling. “This time it was right, it would work, and no one would have to get nailed to anything.

Sadly, however, before she could get to a phone to tell anyone about it, a terrible, stupid catastrophe occurred, and the idea was lost for ever.

And so the problem remained; lots of the people were mean, and most of them were miserable, even the ones with digital watches.”*

I must begin this conversation by saying of course DON’T PANIC. I do believe that spelling should be addressed in schools. I must also disclose that in my first year of teaching (admittedly a short time ago) I too thought the students must memorize spelling words each week. What I discovered that year and through subsequent research (including the article No More Friday Spelling Tests? by Kelly A. Loeffler) was that I was only teaching what was taught to me. I asked myself if memorizing spelling words, one week at a time, was actually working. The answer was no. Students who spelled every word correctly on the Friday test were misspelling those same words the following week in their daily writing. So why was I wasting time. I was wasting time printing the lists. The students were wasting time studying words at home, doing busy work like writing them three times each or alphabetizing them. I was wasting 20 minutes a week giving the test and another 30 minutes scoring it. All this led to frustration at why the students weren’t getting better at spelling. Then I remembered a familiar quote from Anthony Robins: “If you do what you’ve always done, you’ll get what you’ve always gotten.” I studied spelling lists for my entire elementary career and I just now had trouble spelling the word career. Spelling lists didn’t work then and continuing to use a faulty strategy is poor or lazy instruction. It is the 21st century and it is time for a new model for spelling instruction.

Let me introduce you to New Spelling. No lists. No memorizing. No tests. What is it then? Well I believe that spelling words correctly should be done within the context of writing. A student should be able to spell the words correctly that he uses frequently. However, if a student does not know how to spell a word, he must have a system of strategies set in place that will allow him to in-the-end spell the needed word correctly.

This system begins with the student being able to identify either automatically or intuitively that he has misspelled a word. I utilize the traditional ‘circle the word if you know it is misspelled’ axiom. At this point the true teaching and learning occurs. I teach my students five spelling strategies (which Ms. Loeffler outlined in her article).

These problem solving strategies are:

Ask a friend

Sound out the word slowly by using sound boxes or finger tapping.

Use a dictionary (either a printed copy or digital edition)

Use similar words to help spell the troublesome word.

Use a spell-checker (either a handheld device or pulling up a word processing program)

By the time the student has completed as many of the strategies as needed, he will have discovered how to spell the needed word correctly. And chances are, he has taken more ownership over a word that he discovered the spelling to, instead of a meaningless word supplied by his teacher. As the student continues to write and discover how to spell new words, his personal word bank of correctly spelled words will grow (thus achieving the goal of teaching the student how to spell words correctly). As I will discuss in a further post, these strategies do not take the place of vocabulary instruction (which is not spelling word lists). I will conclude by admitting freely that I have not giving a Spelling Test in over three years. Am I the only teacher in my school not giving Spelling Tests? Yes. Can my students still spell? Yes.

If you are a veteran teacher, you may see this “as clinching proof that the whole of known creation has finally gone bananas.” I feel that change is inevitable (I just used 2 strategies to spell inevitable). We must educate our students to solve problems using logical strategies. Spelling is important. Being able to regurgitate a list of 20 words on any given Friday is not a life-long skill. So please, teach them the process for discovering how to spell, not the process of how to cram during lunch on Friday for a meaningless test. Until next time. So long, and go out and teach the kids.

Welcome to my newest blog. I really hate writing these first entry type of posts but they really can’t be helped I suppose. As stated in my About the Author profile, I am a fourth grade teacher from Central Nebraska who is ecstatically married and the father of the most amazing 2 boys you could ever meet. I enjoy the challenges of teaching and technology and often mix the two. I hope you enjoy what you read here. If you do, please hit the subscribe link. Well that wasn’t so terrible for a first post.